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Malaysia on Track to Grow Global Tech Start-up Ecosystem

Malaysia reaffirmed its position as a regional hub for tech startups with the announcement of leading global venture builders setting presence in Malaysia to help accelerate the growth of start-ups in Malaysia and Southeast Asia.Mountain Partners, a Swiss headquartered company builder, will setup their Southeast Asia operations hub in Malaysia. The setup will see Mountain Partners helping more than 15 of their global portfolio companies expand into Malaysia by creating their presence here, and creating more than 400 job opportunities, including more than 50 top C-suite talent roles. Mountain Partners will also setup a USD100 million fund to invest in Malaysia and Southeast Asia tech start-ups.

Additionally, the partnership between the private equity firm Leonie Hill Capital and Japan-based IP Bridge will see Malaysia as the home ground for their venture building initiative that will invest and nurture Malaysia and Southeast Asia innovative Intellectual Property based tech startups, particularly in IoT, sensor and wearable technology, agritech and foodtech. The partnership, through IP Bridge’s global expansion initiative, ManGO Factory, will also relocate more than 10 Southeast Asian and Japanese startups in Malaysia, providing them with facilities, access and market opportunities in Malaysia and Japan. Leonie Hill Capital will provide expertise in commercialization, while IP Bridge will provide expertise on Intellectual Property strategy and advisory.

Dato’ Sri Najib Razak noted: “Malaysia has the right ecosystem for global tech startups to setup and grow in this region. Located at the heart of ASEAN, Malaysia is the gateway for tech startups to expand their reach to the Southeast Asia market. On top of that, our strong infrastructure and reduced cost of doing business are conducive to support and encourage the growth of startups. While Malaysia is set to become a regional hub for tech startups, what this really means is more highskilled jobs will be created through this initiative, thus giving Malaysians more opportunities – economically and socially,”

MDEC launched the Malaysia Digital Hub™ initiative in April this year to further enrich Malaysia’s start-up ecosystem. It is a place where start-ups and scaleups coexist with growth ecosystem players such as venture capitals, accelerators, anchor internet companies, talent builders and mentors. Equipped with highspeed broadband and lifestyle amenities, the digital hubs are owned and operated by the industry where MDEC will certify them with Digital Hub status.

Today, there are four locations certified under this initiative, namely APW, The Co., Common Ground and WORQ. In further enriching the ecosystem in these hubs, strategic partners like Microsoft, Axiata, Alibaba, Maybank, and Y Academy with Kejora, among others were brought in to run programmes that would help the start-ups grow.

As part of the efforts to push forward Malaysia’s plan to become a hub for tech startups, MDEC also introduced Malaysia Tech Entrepreneur Programme (MTEP), an initiative by the Malaysian government that aims to attract gifted and ambitious individuals from all around the world, and help them to kick-start their start-ups in Malaysia. Entrepreneur passes of one or five years are given to qualified new and established entrepreneurs.

Dato’ Sri Najib earlier chaired the 29th Implementation Council Meeting that brings together the nation’s decision makers, including the Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers, policy makers, and heads of agencies into highlevel update briefings and discussions that MDEC oversees. As one the agencies driving the growth of digital transformation in the country, MDEC presented to the committee plans and initiatives that are needed to accelerate Malaysia’s push to become a fully developed digital nation.

About Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC)

Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation or MDEC (formerly known as Multimedia Development Corporation Sdn. Bhd.) is the lead agency in driving the digital economy in Malaysia under the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia. Since its inception 21 years ago, MDEC’s mission is to develop the nation’s digital economy. MDEC’s implementation efforts are centred on driving investments, building local tech champions, catalysing digital innovation ecosystems and propagating digital inclusivity.

MDEC is also responsible to ensure that Malaysia plays an integral part in developing and nurturing talent to drive digital innovation around the world, while attracting participation from global ICT companies to invest and develop cutting edge digital and creative solutions in the country.

To know more about MDEC’s efforts and initiatives in driving BDA, please visit https://www.mdec.my/digital-innovation-ecosystem/big-data-analytics. More information on MDEC can be found on https://www.mdec.my/.